Patty wrote:
>I would think that a natural diet and lots of exercise would make a
>ferret healthier and possibly live longer.  This would be true for us
>humans, although certain genetic things would come up no matter what.  I
>am thinking that since cats and dogs are on kibble, and not hunting,etc,
>like they would in the wild are they dying sooner then those fed all
>natural foods?
 
Exercise definitely, diet maybe, depending on many factors.  Given the
grain content in kibble and the level of processing it makes sense that
it might contribute to things like dental woes, perhaps also to reduced
removal of fur balls, perhaps also to increased chances of insulinoma.
Whether it really does or not remains a postulation.
 
There are other things which simply don't make much sense to attribute to
diet.
 
It doesn't hurt to try modifications as long as a diet is well designed.
 
Certainly, many humans are healthier on a diet which more closely resembles
the ancestral one, though even that will vary among individuals.  Our
T-complex shows a long history with whole grains but some have problems
with them.  Our spatulate incisors show a long history with fruits and some
veggies but some don't tolerate them very well.  Our ancestors had a load
of insects in their diets but I doubt that many of us do.  Meanwhile, our
ancestors did NOT have a lot of flesh food, or a lot of sugar, or a lot of
salt unless you come from one of the more unusual populations.  We all know
that too much flesh food can be bad and sometimes so can high salt or sugar
levels.  We also know that some human populations have altered to deal
better with such foods, like the Inuet have.  Also, we know that is likely
that most ancestral "natural" humans died by around 35.
 
On the other hand, some of the things which are most UNnatural in our diets
actually have turned out to have some good properties, to reduce risks
rather than increase them.
 
It's not a simple problem and frankly, even among humans in relation to
human diet most of what has been learned is generally ignored, and EXERCISE
which has even more evidence in general as a cancer preventative, bone and
muscle maintainer, circulatory and respiratory maintainer, etc.is ignored
even more than diet.
 
Patty also wrote:
>I once heard that animals that live completely in the wild, like a feral
>cat would actually die a lot sooner than one in someone's home getting
>proper shelter and vet care.
 
That is correct.
 
One thing we do when comparing wild to domestic populations is we forget
that we are comparing animals in our homes who live into old age, and thus
get things that are more common in old age, to animals which are typically
dying in what would be their PRIMES within our homes.  How many animals in
the peak health years will show many of the problems being discussed?  Not
many.  Heck, not many will even have fur ball difficulties, yet.
 
Might diet changes make a positive difference in your ferrets' health?  Of
course, they might.  Will they be a cure-all?  No, NOTHING is, not even
exercise though in human studies so far that comes as close to one as
anything ever has.  If you can manage a diet that is well enough balanced
(not just meat) and want to try it, go ahead and be sure to let us all know
the results with things like firm ages and health conditions (good and bad)
over the years.  It might just help your animals be healthier in some ways.
Just don't expect it to eliminate all risks or even to have any effect at
all on some of the risks, that's all.
[Posted in FML issue 3320]